Awakening
by Najel
Summary: While Lara is trying to adjust to some changes, she finds herself a surprise at her doorstep.
1. Changes

_Hello everyone, another story from me. My second tomb raider and it's a sequal to my first story, In search of darkness. I would recommend reading that one first to catch up with the events. But of course if you rather wouldn't, don't let me stop you. First chapter is all about changes mostly, as the title clearly states._

_Once again I like to remind you that English is not my native language and there could be some mistakes in it. And a special thanks to my good friend Gyikhu! Enjoy your read and your feedback would be hugely appreciated. :)_

_Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Tomb Raider characters, only those i created myself._

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 1, Changes.<strong>

The house was small, but he'd said it was big enough for a single recently retired man. She had to admit though, the view Lara saw through the window was beautiful. Dunes falling down a hill ended at a lake. On the other side of the lake was a forest. The further back you look, the more trees would line up. Winston couldn't have picked a better place to retire, though Lara wondered how he could live in a place so small as this. After spending years in the mansion, to her this would almost seem a prison.

But Winston been living here for two months now, and he was enjoying his retirement. Who was she to deny him that. After years of taking care of her and the mansion, years of danger lurking around the corner. Lara lost count on how often her house had been attacked. Now it was time to spend the last remaining years of his life taking care of himself. He deserved it, but that didn't mean Lara had to like it. She'd grown up with Winston, never had another butler. No, butler is not the correct word, he didn't deserve that. He is a friend, a man who took over the role of her father after he'd died.

A house at a lake in Scotland. How often had he talked about it, Lara could still hear him say the words and now it had finally happened.

"Just a small place at a lake in Scotland, with a pleasing view. That's all I'd like to have when the time comes, Miss Croft."

Never had the tomb raider thought that time would come. To her opinion Winston was a Duracell battery that just kept going, nothing or no one could stop him. But now she was here, at the actual place in Scotland and the view was indeed pleasing. The older man was walking back into the living room, holding a cup of tea he made for her. The same cup of tea he always made for her every morning she was at the mansion. Even though retired, he still wore a classy suit, probably something he'd gotten used to in all those years he lived at her mansion.

"I'm sorry I didn't make time sooner to come visit you, Winston." Lara said as she gladly took the cup of tea and seated herself on the couch behind her.

He smiled at her and took a seat on a rather relaxing looking chair across of her.

"I know how busy life can be for you, Miss Croft, don't worry."

"You know Winston, you're retired, you don't have to call me Miss Croft anymore. Not that you ever had to."

"A grown habit." He chuckled. "But tell me, how are things at the mansion. How is my replacement doing?"

Lara was about to take a sip from her tea, but she paused just as her lips touched the cup. Her eyes locked on Winston. This was a sensitive subject to her, finding a replacement for Winston had been hard. It simply was impossible to replace him. There had been many applicants during his last few months at the manor. But Lara had turned them all down. Too dull, too talkative, too nosey, too…anything. She had not liked any of them. So Winston had offered to find her a good replacement.

The tomb raider didn't like him either. No one could replace Winston, but he practically begged her to take this man in and Lara promised to give him a try. Now two months later, she still didn't like it. She still wanted Winston back, but he wouldn't come back. He is here now, in the small but perfect house at a lake in Scotland. So slowly she had accepted the new butler, but they still had a lot of disagreements. Not her line of work though, this was the first thing she as well as Winston had mentioned to him. Working and living at Croft manor was not just a challenge, it was also a danger. But this man, clearly many years younger than Winston and closer to Lara's age but still older, had stated his old job never had been without risks either, so these circumstances would not bother him.

"I don't know Winston. I know he's not you, but…he says I should live up to my title more often, be a lady. It annoys me."

"Miss Croft, in all the years I worked for you, did I ever stop trying to turn you into a lady?"

She bit her lip, opened her mouth for a suitable response but found herself without one. She remained silent, refusing to admit he was right. Her silence was a confirmation on its own for Winston, who leaned back in his chair and spoke up again.

"I'm sorry Miss Croft, but I'm afraid you will have to get used to not having me around anymore. Whether you like it or not. But is Hilary really so horrible to have around?"

The tomb raider lowered her head, finally admitting defeat.

"I guess not…" she looked up, a smile formed on her face. "He makes good tea at least."

Winston offered a smile in return. "Before you know it you've forgotten all about me." He said.

"I would never forget you, Winston. You've been too important for that in my life…" she hesitated but continued. "You've been like a father to me."

Her words touched him deeply, she could see it from the reaction in his eyes. No doubt he would see her as a daughter. But as good as he is at listening to Lara talk, and helping her with her problems, how bad he actually is at emitting his own feelings. So he smiled, closed his eyes together and nodded. That is the best response she could get out of him.

Lara always thought it to be a bit weird. During the years he worked at the manor he had been there for her countless times. With Alistar's death, with the loss of her parents, and loads of other times. He listened, comforted her and talked a lot about moving on, no matter how hard it might be for the tomb raider. How can a good man like that have so much trouble to show his own emotions.

"So…" Winston started, breaking the uncomfortable silence. "How is Zip coping with Hilary then?"

Lara lowered her head. "He's been gone for a while now, taking care of his sick father."

Winston looked worried. "Oh my, how sick is he, will he be well soon?"

"I'm afraid not and I don't think he will be back anytime soon. I talked to him last week and his father's condition is getting worse. He had no idea when he would be back, but promised he would find me a temporary replacement."

Winston nodded. "Give him my best, it cannot be an easy time for him." He said.

"He will appreciate that Winston, thank you."

Lara took the last sip of her tea. Gently she placed the empty cup at the table in front of her. It was sad indeed what Zip went through at the moment. Lara saw he was devastated when Zip had heard his father had an incurable disease. Zip's father was a good man, he'd even been to the manor a few times. Lara had told Zip he could take as much time as he needed to look after his father.

She missed him though, being alone at the manor with the new butler wasn't really something she preferred. But with Zip's absence things are all going a bit slower. Plans were to leave for Cambodia in two weeks. But there still was so much to arrange. It worried the tomb raider, if she did not manage to arrange everything on her own before then she might have to postpone the trip.

Lara spent the rest of the afternoon at Winston's new residence. They talked some more, Winston showed her the rest of the house and they even went for a walk. After a long and uneasy goodbye the tomb raider started her trip back home. Only just after dark she arrived back at the manor. Barely had the tomb raider left the garage when she noticed Hilary waiting for her.

"Good evening, lady Croft. How was your day with Winston, is he settling in nicely?"

Lara did her best to answer him with a smile. "He's doing fine, Hilary. Thanks for asking. Anything interesting happened while I was away?" she asked him.

He shook his head in response. "Yet another quiet day. Can I perhaps please you with a cup of cof…tea?" he asked, realizing his mistake in time.

Lara didn't like coffee. Nothing beats a good cup of tea and as she had told Winston earlier, Hilary actually made a good one too. But his former employer was a coffee man and every now and then the butler fell back into that old habit.

Lara considered his offer for a moment. It was actually still too early to call it a night. But it had been a long day and the trip did make her feel a bit tired. Maybe a cup of tea would make her feel better and she could do some more work on the Cambodia trip.

"Very well, Hilary. I'll be in the tech room."

While the butler made his way to the kitchen for her tea, Lara found her way to the room with an endless amount of computers. However, the tomb raider reached for a sole laptop and placed it on her lap while she seated herself on the comfortable chair Zip usually claims for himself. But he wasn't here now, so she might as well occupy it while he was away. The tomb raider kicked off her shoes, she crossed her legs while the heels of her bare feet connected with the desk in front of her. Her head moved up to the monitors that hung above the desk. All twenty five screens showed the results of cameras that secured the manor and should catch possible burglars.

At the moment it was all quiet, she didn't expect anything less. With all the changes that had been going around she didn't have a lot of time to plan any trips or be a thorn in the side of some sort of illegal dealer. She had her fair share of break ins. Karel, that doppelganger Natla created and plenty more. But recently she had not angered anyone. Still, Lara held a lot of priceless and sometimes dangerous artifacts in her manor. Artifacts that, should someone find out to be at her home, would be reason for some people to break in to her house and try to steal it.

"Here's your tea, Lady Croft."

Hilary interrupted her thoughts, stepping next to her he held out a silver plate that carried a porcelain cup filled with the tea he'd promised her. Lara nodded at him and reached for the cup, the plate disappeared once the cup rested safely in her hands. Hilary pointed at the security system.

"Is something wrong?" he spoke, wondering why the tomb raider was watching the screens.

"No, nothing is wrong. I was just waiting for the laptop to boot. Thanks for the tea, Hilary."

"Of course." He kindly said, with a slight nod.

The butler could still notice Lara didn't feel comfortable with him. Hilary didn't think much of it…yet. The tomb raider had grown up with Winston, to not have him but someone else in his place was something she had to get used to. The butler himself could see this and Winston had told him too. So Hilary decided to give her space and time.

But eventually she would have to accept the fact that Winston earned his well deserved rest and that he would not be coming back. Hilary would be sure to prove himself to her. He'd heard stories about her, before he started working here. An Archaeologist, tomb raider who did well for herself. She'd been in the news every now and then, never on a negative way. But she had done her best to stay out of the headlines mostly. The only time she had been on the news was during museum exhibitions or charity donations.

From what he experienced so far she could be a complicated woman, but he also noticed her sense of humor occasionally. Though during his first few weeks here she'd been rather rude. Hilary decided to ignore her rudeness, after all Winston had warned him that this was a big change to her, a change that she would get used to in due time.

At this time though, with the cup of tea in her hands, he could notice she didn't really feel comfortable with him around. This probably was because of her visit to Winston earlier. It was probably best to leave her be and the few small subjects he wanted to discuss with her could wait till tomorrow. Just as he turned to leave, however, she stopped him.

"Hilary…can I ask you something?"

He was startled by the tone of her voice. It was…different, gentler. It confused him, made him curious about the question ahead.

"Of course you can, Milady." He said formally.

The tomb raider locked her eyes on him. She hesitated with her question, looking away at first. But she turned back and spoke.

"Do you dislike me?"

The butler felt an eyebrow rise at that question. Of all the questions she could have asked him, this was one he certainly didn't see coming. He saw the doubt in her face, it was obvious she wasn't sure she should have asked him this question.

"I…uhm…" what on earth was he supposed to say as an answer.

"Wait…" The tomb raider interrupted him, placed the laptop on the desk in front of her and jumped from her seat. "Did you hear that?"

Hillary shook his head, he didn't hear anything. But after the question Lara just asked him he was so far lost in his thoughts that he doubted he would hear a grenade explode next to his head. In that case, he was glad the tomb raider interrupted her own question.

"It sounded like an explosion of sorts, or a gunshot coming from outside."

Lara looked up to the security system, scanning the monitors for something out of the ordinary. Her head jerked back when she heard the distant sound of a rifle being fired. Hilary heard it too this time as he looked into the same direction as Lara.

"Where's it coming from?" the butler wondered.

The tomb raider tried to find that answer on one of the monitors. Moving her eyes from one side to another. The backside of the house looked quiet, as did the front gate and the front yard. Her attention went to the garage now, where it also seemed quiet. But then there was movement from the corner of her eye. Lara looked back and found movement at the front gate, someone was leaning against it, looking up to the camera.

Lara narrowed her eyes, it was a man but she didn't recognize him. The one thing she did notice, his clothes looked stained by blood and he looked exhausted. The man collapsed to his knees, yelling something in the camera. He looked desperate, scared. That could only mean that whatever sort of threat was chasing him, was still present and he was desperately seeking out help.

"Who is that?" Hilary asked.

Lara didn't answer his question at first, she reached for a drawer under her desk and snatched a gun out of it. Quickly checking if it was loaded she pointed at a desk with a few controls behind them.

"I have no idea, but this man needs help. Open the gate Hilary I'm going outside to help him."

"Milady you have no idea what's out there, are you sure that's wise?" He yelled after her as she was already on her way outside, not bothering to put her shoes back on.

Lara heard his concerns but didn't react to it. Of course it was dangerous, but Lara had been in worse situations surely. Besides, she was armed. If there were people around trying to kill her then she would just have to be one step ahead of them.

Quickly she ran through the garage, once on the other side she threw the door open and let her bare feet connect with the cold cobblestones that lead towards the front gate. When Lara turned around the corner, the injured man became visible, but he wasn't alone anymore. Two men were leaning over him, one pointing a gun at his head.

"Hey!" Lara yelled just before the thug pulled the trigger of his gun.

The man looked up, wondering of course why he got distracted from his task. But as soon as he saw Lara running at him, the gun was pointed at the tomb raider. Lara's reaction was faster though. The gun in her hand rose up and she fired one round, which landed perfectly between the eyes of the thug.

The other one held a machine gun, and had an even slower reaction then his accomplice. But Lara was within arm's reach of this thug now. Instead of shooting him she jumped up, rearing her arm backwards and then forcefully slammed it forward, with the gun still in her hand. The barrel of Lara's gun connected painfully with the man's temple. He collapsed to the floor and was out instantly.

A black SUV stood just outside the gate, both front doors were open. Before assisting the injured man on the ground, she had to check the SUV first, in case there were more men with the wrong type of intensions around. With the gun pointed in front of her the tomb raider carefully approached the SUV. With slow and light sidesteps Lara walked around the left side. The tomb raider paused when standing side to side with the open door.

She took a deep breath and then turned to the SUV, gun at the ready. No one came in sight. Lara took another step and aimed her gun left to see if there was someone in the back of the car. Relieved she lowered her gun and moved away from the vehicle, now giving the injured man her full attention.

The tomb raider hurried over to him and kneeled down. She gently pressed two finger to his neck, checking for a pulse. Disappointed by the result she lowered her head, slightly shaking it.

"Poor man…"

Bang!

Lara was startled when the sound of a shotgun came from behind her. Her head jerked up and she noticed the man she had knocked out now stood to his feet and had a handgun aimed at Lara's head. That round from the shotgun being fired behind her must have come in an attempt to prevent Lara from being shot. No doubt it came from Hilary, but he'd missed and the thug in front of Lara already had his finger on the trigger.

He squeezed it, Lara was too late to react. The young woman turned her head away in reflex. Awaiting the fatal shot. After all she had been through, Lara didn't expect to go down like this. In a collapsing tomb maybe, or being shot in a firefight. But not outside on her own property after a moment of unawareness, or better said a bit of stupidity on her side. She should have known better, she should have checked to see if this man was really knocked out and not half awake still. But it was too late for that now, she had made a mistake and now Lara was going to pay for it with her life.

Click…click…click, click, click.

Lara frowned, that was the sound of a gun being out of bullets. She faced the thug and saw he desperately threw away the handgun and was about to lunge at Lara. He never even got close to her. Another shotgun round was fired, this time it did connect with its target and the force of the shot knocked the man backwards. Hilary had hit him square in the chest, the man landed on the front of the SUV, his eyes stared blankly ahead of him, making it obvious to Lara that he most definitely was dead this time.

Suddenly a pair of hands reached for the collar of her shirt and yanked her down. Lara couldn't stop a surprised cry from escaping. Startled she looked down at who got hold of her shirt and met the desperate eyes of the injured man she thought to be dead. His grip on her was strong from desperation. His breathing was heavy. Lara only just noticed his type of clothing. The black suit and the white collar told the tomb raider he was a priest. His long blond hair that had been tied together had fallen out of its place and was dirty from mud and blood.

"I…he...I…"

Lara tried to gently pull his hands away, but he stubbornly held his grip on her shirt. "Calm down sir, I can help you, let me get you in my house." She tried to convince him.

The tomb raider tried to get back on her feet, but the desperate outburst made his strength superior over her own, even though heavily injured. He pulled her even closer now, his breathing got worse and blood poured from his mouth. His condition worsened and to be honest Lara doubted she could even save him.

This man seemed to know he couldn't be saved. But one thing was clear, he tried to tell her something important and was making it obvious to her that she should stop trying to help him and start listening to him. Though so far what he tried to say was not understandable to Lara. So he pulled her even closer and Lara saw he gathered all the strength he had left. His entire body shook, blood poured from his nose and mouth. While tears fell down from his wide, desperate eyes, he opened his mouth and he spoke.

"Krr…Karrll."


	2. Discovery

_Hello all, been while since i been able to update had a really busy period. Thanks to those who reviewed the first chapter, I hope you enjoy the 2__nd__ chapter just as much and feel free to press that review button afterwards. ^^_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 2, Discovery.<strong>

The grip on Lara's shirt instantly dislodged, which resulted in the man collapsing on the cold wet cobblestones. Lara looked down at him, searching for his eyes. She found the pair of blue eyes staring blankly ahead of them, proving that all signs of life really had left his body this time. Sad but true. The tomb raider closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Raindrops found their way down her cheeks as she took a moment to process the recent events.

Even though she never met this man, it was sad to have seen him die in her arms. The priest had probably gone through a lot to try and reach her to deliver this message. He certainly hadn't deserved to die like this, or to die at all. He was too young to die. Yet his death was a fact now, she could dwell on it all she liked, it would not solve the problem he had exposed to her. A danger she wasn't supposed to know. These men had done anything in their power to prevent the message from reaching Lara, but they had failed even though the man had to pay for it with his life.

A fact that Karel would learn sooner or later. These men obviously had to report back to a chain of command that would eventually lead to Karel. The tomb raider wondered how Karel had managed to free himself from the prison Kyra had locked him into. Her thoughts went back to the day when they won an almost impossible battle. The last known weapon to kill Karel had been impossible to get, but at least Kyra managed to imprison him in the half collapsed chapel in Turkey.

The only way for him to escape was for Kyra to die, those were the Ferilium's exact words…Lara held her breath. This wouldn't mean that…no, she refused to think that way. Lara will have to see for herself what happened there In Turkey. The tomb raider refused to believe so easily that Kyra is dead, there must be another reason for the Nephilim's escape. Her thoughts were interrupted when she caught movement in the corner of her eye. Hilary stepped next to her.

The tomb raider took a deep breath, standing back on her by now cold wet feet. She wiped some raindrops from her face while scanning her eyes over the dead bodies of the two thugs she and Hilary had killed a few moments ago out of self defense.

"What a mess…" she mumbled softly while turning her eyes to Hilary.

"Did you really not know this man?" the butler wondered.

His question got answered with a slight shake of her head. " I didn't, but the name he spoke sadly is familiar to me." She stated.

"What did the priest say?" Hilary asked again, expressing his curiosity.

"A while ago I was on an adventure together with two other people we managed to imprison a very dangerous man. But if we are to believe this priest, and I see no point not to because he gave his life to try and reach me, Joachim Karel is no longer trapped and that is a really big problem."

Lara saw the butler frown when the tomb raider mentioned Karel's name.

"Oh, I remember that name. Winston mentioned he was trapped somewhere in Turkey."

"Like you say indeed, Hilary. He was trapped there. I will have to fly over there to have a look I'm afraid."

"But what about your trip to Cambodia?" the butler remembered.

The trip to Cambodia, she had almost forgotten about it. Though it was important, if Karel was indeed out of his prison then that had to be the priority. Cambodia can wait and will have to be postponed. If Karel escaped, Lara will have to find out what his plans are. Though the tomb raider could make a wild guess, but she really rather wouldn't think about it.

"Cambodia will have to be postponed. This is much more important, Hilary."

The butler nodded. " I understand." He looked down at the three dead bodies on the cold wet ground. "Would you like me to clean this mess up, Miss Croft?"

"That would be great, Hilary. Did Winston tell you who our cleaning contact is?" She said, putting an extra tone on the word cleaning to make the point it wasn't just a cleaning guy but more or less a contact Lara had for getting rid of bodies in and around her manor.

He gave her a nod in response, but before she would let him handle this mess, Lara decided to search the priest to see if he held any clues to Karel's escape. Her hands searched through his jacket pockets and then down to the pockets of his pants. There she found a note and a cheap mobile phone. She thought about looking through them there and then, but decided to wait till she was inside, where it was warm and dry.

"Could you search the remaining bodies for anything useful, Hilary? I am going inside to have a look at this phone and the note."

Hilary answered her with a nod and approached one of the two bodies. Lara turned around and followed the path back to her manor. But she barely took a few paces before the tomb raider forced herself to a halt. The reason for this was a distant sound, it sounded like a car engine. Lara immediately put her defenses up and reached for her gun. Perhaps there were more goons on their way, maybe these two lying dead on her property were supposed to call in and of course were unable to do so.

Whatever it was, Lara did not take any risks. On a high but cautious pace her bare wet feet moved fluently over the cold cobblestones as she approached the gate, gun pointed ahead of her. The sound of the car engine was closing in fast and the approaching vehicle slowly came into sight, clearly heading for the front gate. But the gate obviously was blocked by the SUV of the two dead men on the ground.

"Stay behind me, Hilary." She ordered the butler.

Even though he did what she said, he still had readied his shotgun but watched as Lara turned to her left and aimed her gun at the nearing vehicle. Lara had a good look at it now. She frowned, it looked…old. No that wasn't the right word for it. The way it was put together made the car look old. The front side was colored red, well what was left of the color, rust hat taken most of it away. Lara saw the right side of the car was painted silver and well the rest of the car was more rust then she had ever seen.

It was a miracle that this car still drove. Especially when a loud squeaking sound entered her ears as the car was forced to a halt because of the road blocking SUV. White smoke came from under the hood and the heavy rumbling sound that came from the engine only got worse once the vehicle stood still. The tomb raider tried to look inside, but the class had been darkened, all she could make out was a man sitting behind the wheel. She could not see his face, or worse, his intentions. So the tomb raider kept her gun aimed at the…vehicle and decided to force the man out of the car.

"Get out, slowly with your hands above your head." She said demanding.

It seemed the man hesitated for a moment, the door to the driver's seat stayed closed. Lara decided to show the man just how serious she was by removing the safety of her gun, making sure he heard the clicking sound.

The message appeared to be a lot clearer to the man now. The door of the car opened and the man stepped out stretching his hands up in the air, just as Lara had demanded. Maybe he even exaggerated a bit. But Lara saw fear in this man's eyes, especially when he was far away enough from his car to see the three corpses on the floor. It startled him and he quickly took a few paces back.

"Blimey, please don't shoot me, please don't shoot me." He said panicked, turning his head and squinting his eyes together.

It made the tomb raider frown. This man was scared and panicked, surely this wouldn't be the type of person Karel would send after her, or after the priest for that matter. Not to mention that metal scrapped piece of rust that would pass for a car and the big silver trailer behind it. Something else was going on here. But she didn't lower her gun just yet.

"Who are you?" she demanded to know.

Lara had barely managed to ask her question or he already had the answer waiting for her.

"Bryce, my name is Bryce. I beg you, I'll do anything just don't shoot me."

Lara chuckled, the panic coming from this man was actually quite amusing. She studied him, he was a bit short, definitely shorter then herself. He had had half long brown hair that looked as if it hadn't been touched by a brush for a few weeks. His clothing looked old, she spotted a few holes in his black jeans and yellow shirt. It was safe to say that this man wasn't send here by Karel to kill her. The tomb raider decided she should make him feel a bit more comfortable and lowered her gun.

The man, Bryce, was overwhelmed with relief when he saw Lara lowering her gun. The tomb raider shakes her head in disbelief, but a smile was allowed on her face while she tugged the gun behind her back. Hilary stepped next to her and mirrored her smile while he rested his shotgun on his shoulder. There was a question that remained though. If this man wasn't send by Karel, why was he here?

"Don't worry, Bryce. We are not going to shoot you." Lara started. "But now that we have established you didn't come here with the same intensions as these two dead mercenaries, can you tell us why you are here?"

Bryce nodded, risking a few paces closer to Lara. After all, she was still the woman with the gun not to mention the fact that she was standing annoyingly close to the two dead mercenaries.

"Zip asked me to come here for a few weeks while he is out in the States." The British man said. "But I'm slowly starting to regret letting him talk me into this."

Surprised as she was, the tomb raider tilted her head to the left and narrowed her eyes. While she had no idea Zip had finally been able to arrange someone, this man surely would fit the profile of a computer nerd. This thought she kept to herself though as she was certain this man wouldn't appreciate being called a nerd.

"You are the replacement Zip promised me?"

Almost as confused, the computer tech answered her.

"Wait a minute, you are Lady Lara Croft?" he said confused.

Lara chuckled. "Yes, that's me." She said.

Out of nowhere there suddenly formed a smile from ear to ear on his face. And Lara could have sworn she saw his eyes twinkle.

"Blimey, Zip didn't tell me you were some hot looking trigger happy bird. I think I might stay after all."

Lara sighed deeply. She already regretted asking Zip to find her a replacement. She didn't need a drooling computer nerd, she needed someone who could assist her with tomb raiding. Then again, Zip sort of had a similar reaction when he first met her and Lara was keen on saying the same thing to Bryce as she had said to Zip all those years ago. So she approached the computer nerd, placing her hand on his shoulder.

"Let's go inside so we can talk, don't need to stand in the rain any longer than necessary." Bryce nodded and moved forward. But Lara stopped him by increasing the hold she had on his shoulder. Startled he looked up to her and found himself staring at a pair of confident eyes that managed to send a shiver all the way down his spine.

"Oh once more thing, Bryce." She started. "I am your employer, not your hot trigger happy bird. If I hear those words one more time, I might reconsider shooting you, understood?"

Bryce stared blankly ahead of him, still trying to progress the words Lara had just confronted him with. He barely noticed the grip being removed from his shoulder, not until he saw Lara was walking back onto her property and slowly fading in the distance. He shook his head clear and ran after her.

"Understood, Lady Croft. I am sorry." He screamed after her. "But what about my car and my trailer?"

Lara had already reached the door to the garage. She turned her head and glanced over her shoulder, her eyes connected with Bryce running as fast as he could to catch up with the tomb raider.

"Hilary will take care of that. Now hurry up inside, Bryce, we have a lot to discuss."

The computer tech saw the teasing look in her eyes before she went inside. He swallowed deeply and hesitated, staring at the garage door as it fell into its lock with ease.

"What did you get yourself into this time, Bryce." He asked himself.

Gathering all the courage he could he opened the door and walked inside, allowing the door to close behind him with a soft click.


	3. Onwards

_Thanks everyone for your feedback. I really appreciate that. And apologies for letting you wait this long for the next chapter. I'm a busy girl and have multiple projects running at the moment. This chapter is a bit short, still hope you like it and I will keep doing my best to update faster._

**Chapter 3, Onwards.**

With unimaginable amazement Bryce looked at the tech room. His mouth was wide open and it gaped at all the equipment standing inside the room. He thought he had setup quite the system in his trailer, but this definitely beat it all. He never knew Zip was working in a place as big as this, but that to the side, he definitely had done a good job with the system here. Lara suddenly stepped into his view, staring at him and watching in what Bryce believed to be quite the amusement.

"When you are done staring, Bryce, feel free to step inside and look around," she said.

Startled he looked up to her, did she just say he could just walk in and do whatever he liked with a computer system setup by Zip?

"What? You let me go inside, you trust me just like that?" He asked confused.

The tomb raider nodded. "Zip trusted you enough as his temporary replacement, I trust his decision. If it turns out I was wrong, Zip as well as you will find out just how much that would disappoint me," she said, hoping to make the indirect threat more than clear to the computer tech.

Bryce swallowed deeply, it didn't take a fool to realize that was a warning. No second chances. But who was he kidding, Bryce never fucked up. Well except for that one time he'd got caught hacking into British Intelligence, and that time he'd put himself on the guest list of a big secret illegal auction. The tech smiled when he remembered replacing himself with a really important Russian crime lord. He always thought it had been a great move. Until he found that crime lord knocking on his apartment door.

It definitely had not been funny back then, he'd barely escaped with his life. But thinking back it actually made him smile and he knew it wasn't the last time he made a mistake. But that was all quite some years ago, and this was the present, working at a freaking castle for a woman whom he could imagine having a maximized picture of hanging above his bed. This was an opportunity to start over and actually make something out of himself instead of hiding and constantly running from the government and criminals he pissed off.

He interrupted his own train of thoughts and saw that Lara was still looking at him, waiting for the tech to step inside. _Right, no second chances Bryce, so don't piss the bird off, he told himself_.

"Yes, yes. Don't piss of the boss, I got it," he said to Lara and finally found the courage to step inside.

Again the British man looked in amazement when he slowly turned and studied all the equipment in the room. It was astonishing all these systems, and all of it from what he could see was shiny and new. Hell, he even recognized a UPC standing in the corner that officially wasn't on the market yet. All this equipment, it must have cost a fortune. Bryce decided he had seen enough and seated himself on one of the chairs. He took a deep breath, it was time to try and see just how well this system was running.

"Bloody hell, how did you manage to afford all this equipment? Everything is high tech in here," he said while he had a look at the security system.

Lara folded her arms and raised an eyebrow. "You are not seriously asking me this, are you Bryce?" she asked smiling.

Bryce had been caught up too much in his own amazement to notice what he was asking was actually a stupid question. It wasn't until she pointed that out to him that he realized it was probably one of the most stupid questions he had ever asked.

"Right…" he said, scratching the back of his head. "I think I got a bit caught up in the moment. Your systems, they are so much better than I've ever worked with myself. It will take a while to get to know everything."

Lara walked over to him and gave him a pat on the shoulder.

"You will have all the time in the world, after you contact Shugrave and ask him how fast he can be here. You can find his contact details on the computer you are sitting behind. If you have any questions, Hilary can answer them. I have to prepare myself for a trip to Turkey."

Bryce nodded as he gapingly watched how Lara walked up the gigantic staircase and slowly disappeared out of sight. He found that woman absolutely magnificent, but at the same time there was something about her that scared him. What had the British woman meant when she'd said she would show just how disappointed she would be if Bryce made a fatal mistake.

Frankly, he didn't want to find out. And if the tech would just do what this woman asked of him, he couldn't see how he would disappoint her somehow. But the next time he'd talk to Zip, he would be sure to thank the American for this opportunity. Not that long ago he had been in trouble so deep he wasn't sure he would be able to get out of it and now he was working for one of the richest women in England. And not just some woman, she also had a computer system most of his friends would be jealous of. This was his chance to start over and Bryce would be sure to grasp it.

* * *

><p>A cold winter breeze collided with Lara's cheeks. The tomb raider shivered and dug herself a bit deeper into her thick coat. Last time she had been here, the weather conditions were a lot better, but frankly Lara would have preferred to never come back here at all. Unfortunately the events at her home yesterday had forced her to return and the view ahead of her only increased the worries that were floating around in her stomach.<p>

She was about a few meters away from where the chapel was supposed to be standing. But her eyes landed on nothing but debris. With a deep sigh she approached the area, Lara forced herself to a halt when she reached an edge that lead a really long way down. Her head shook in disbelief. This was the dungeon where Kyra had locked Karel into. Obviously the Nephilim was not present in it anymore.

There was absolutely nothing left of the chapel. The tomb raider wondered what could have happened. The shield looked to be so strong. Unbreakable according to Kyra, unless she would die. But Lara had a hard time believing that Kyra was dead. That would leave the tomb raider with two questions. If Kyra wasn't dead, where was she now and why hadn't she contacted Lara yet. Something must be very, very wrong and Lara was keen to find out what exactly made it possible for Karel to escape.

"Perhaps I should have a look inside…" she told herself.

Lara had brought some equipment with her, it shouldn't be a problem to climb down. With a bit of luck she might find a clue that would lead her to well..something or someone that eventually would lead to Karel. She turned and advanced to the tree line a few meters back, where she had dropped her bag on the muddy and icy ground. Once her equipment was within reach the tomb raider knelt down and pulled her climbing gear out. As she turned her head, something caught her attention from the corner of her eye.

The tomb raider stopped her current actions and looked up to the left to see if she was right about what she saw. She did see it right, there was a body lying over there. From a first look at it, Lara saw it was a woman and this immediately rang every alarm bell in her head.

"No, don't let that be Kyra." She thought out loud while she jumped to her feet and ran to the body.

The woman was lying on her back, but dark hair covered her face and didn't immediately make it possible for Lara to identify her. Once she reached the body, Lara rushed to her knees and brushed the hair away from the woman's face. A dead body didn't scare her anymore, she had seen too many of them already in her life. Relief overwhelmed her when she saw that this woman wasn't Kyra.

"Oh, thank god." She said relieved, leaning back.

While Lara was still breathing the relief off her, she scanned the woman's body to see if there was something about her she would recognize. A quick look made it obvious that this woman was dressed as a tourist, she was Asian, wearing a hikers outfit and around her waist was a small bag specially made to carry a camera. However, the camera was no longer inside of it. From the awkward angle the woman's head was lying in, it wasn't hard for Lara to realize the cause of death of this woman. Her neck was broken.

"Poor woman, she probably was at the wrong place at the wrong time…"

It was obvious that Karel was the one who broke this woman's neck. But Lara wondered, was this woman responsible for the Nephilim's freedom, after all, this area was off limits for tourists. Why was she here, did she get lost, or did the chapel catch her attention. Lara sighed, she could keep asking these questions. But the answer was obvious, find Karel. And from all this, Lara still had no clue to where the Nephilim could be.

Suddenly Lara started realizing something. How long had it been since Karel broke free, a week tops. Couldn't be a lot more. From looking at the body, maybe even less. Still, this woman was a tourist and she probably didn't go to Efeze on her own. After a certain amount of time she would be missed, people would go looking for her. A search party would have no problem finding her here. But this poor woman was still here. And there could only be one reason for this that Lara could think of. Karel had assumed her identity, a perfect way to leave the area completely unnoticed.

"Bloody Nephilim." Lara muttered frustratingly.

The tomb raider leaned forward again, hands searching through the woman's pockets hoping she would find something useful. When she reached the right front pocket of the woman's coat Lara's fingers connected with something. She removed it from the pocket and held it up. A quick study told Lara it was a business card.

"Hotel Efeze, ucuz ve kaliteli." Lara said in her rusty Turkish accent. "Cheap and quality in a hotel, I very much doubt it."

Lara tugged the business card in her own pocket and reached for the empty camera bag. She removed it from the woman's waist and took it with her while she walked back to where her equipment was.

"Let's pay the hotel a visit, perhaps I can find out more there."

She gathered everything and walked to the edge of Karel's former prison. Lara glanced down one more time, thinking maybe she should still have a look inside. But she doubted there was anything left in it. Karel wasn't sloppy, he always cleaned up after him. Just as he'd tried with the priest that had come to her manor. While he'd succeeded in killing him, the priest had manage to contact her. Probably not what Karel had intended, but that's what he got for letting other people do his dirty work, Lara thought smiling.

With one last look she turned her back to the scene and walked back up on the hill. There her jeep was waiting and she would find her way to the hotel on the business card in the hopes to reveal a new clue to Karel's whereabouts.


	4. Charms and nerves

**Chapter 4, Charmes and nerves.**

Lara stood in front of the entrance of the hotel. It actually didn't look as bad as she expected. The promised quality on the business card looked valid, from the outside at least. Well not the quality she usually runs into when staying at a hotel. But for an average budget tourist it looked good enough. Though Lara shouldn't dwell in the quality of the hotel, she was here for a reason and best not waste any time. As someone came walking out of the building the entrance doors slid open. Lara took a quick peek inside and saw a man standing behind the counter.

He looked to be in his thirties, shorter then her and his dark half long hair was perfectly combed to the sides of his head. A pair of glasses rested on his nose and he looked to be really focused on something on his computer. Lara sighed and turned away. The tomb raider looked down to her hands where she was holding the bag she found on the dead woman, a smile formed on her face as an idea formed in her head.

She put the bag down and reached for her coat. She zipped it down till about her chest and then reached for the buttons of the blouse she was wearing. Lara unbuttoned it until it showed a decent cleavage. Kneeling down, she picked up the bag again and turned back to the building. The British woman took another deep breath, this had better work.

"Right…the things I do to save the world." She said smiling and walked into the building.

Her entrance already didn't go unnoticed by a group of tourists that stood a few yards away from the counter. Lara completely ignored them and continued her path to the counter. Unfortunately though, the hotel employee hadn't noticed her yet and was still focused on his computer. But Lara knew how to get his attention. Once the young woman reached the counter she put the camera bag on it to make sure she would get noticed.

However, the man ignored her completely. Whatever he was mixed up in, it seemed to be more important than helping a customer. Well the quality on the business card certainly was slowly falling apart with this man working behind the counter. Frankly, Lara was not in the mood nor did she have the time to wait till he finally decides to help her. The next option was clearing her throat, that should at least make him look up, she hoped.

"Ahem…"

Well it definitely got his attention, but when their eyes met she expected to see a smile. Instead he looked at her annoyingly. Which didn't last long either, he instantly looked back to his computer completely without any interest for Lara. At least that was what it looked like at first, but just as Lara was about to give up on trying this the nice way, he looked back up again and this time with a rather big smile.

"Ooh, good day Miss, I didn't notice you there." He said in broken English, at least noticing that she wasn't Turkish.

Then again, his eyes already didn't seem to be able to leave her cleavage. Lara rolled her eyes and wondered why she even bothered to do this. All she had to do was reach for the collar of his polo shirt and force him to tell her what she wanted to know. But of course that would give her all the wrong kind of attention, so she decided to suck it up and continue her act.

"That's quite alright." She said kindly. "I was hoping you could help me with something."

Lara could see it took him a lot of effort to remove his stare from her cleavage, but he managed to look up and he pulled out a smile from ear to ear. Lara chuckled, all that was missing now was some slobber from the corners of his mouth.

"Oh yes, of course, of course. What is it you wish to touch…" his eyes widened in shock when I realized the mistake he made. "Know, I mean what is it you want to know?"

This was actually quite amusing, she should have used her charms more often in her line of work.

"Oh thank you sir. You see," she started, pretending she didn't notice his mistake, "I work as a guide in the mountains. And not that long ago I had this lovely Chinese couple with me, just the friendliest of people, really."

Lara hoped she guessed correctly about the woman being here with a lover. After all, she had seen a ring around one of the woman's fingers. Best not to dwell on it, she thought and lifted the bag up in the air to continue her conversation.

"They left their camera in my bus and I found a card with it referring to your lovely hotel. So I am hoping this is where they are staying and that they are still here, would you have any idea?"

The tomb raider noticed that during her explanation his eyes had gone down to her cleavage again. Men, they are so predictable and easy to manipulate. A silence fell, and the man suddenly realized that he had been asked about something but he was so far away in his fantasies, he probably had no idea what Lara had asked him. He instantly looked up, not even loosing the smile for one second.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" Lara answered him by lifting the camera bag in the air again. "Oh yes, the bag of your tourists."

Now that his eyes were aimed at Lara's again instead of her cleavage he suddenly seemed to remember Lara's question.

"As the matter of fact we do have a Chinese couple staying here, why don't you leave the bag here and I'll leave a cleavage for them on the message board…a message, I said message…didn't I?"

Lara chuckled and leaned a bit more forward, his eyes instantly went down again.

"Yes you did, but I was hoping to surprise them at their room and at the same time I can give them a nice discount on their next tour. Can't you give me their room number I'm sure they wouldn't mind."

To make sure she could manipulate him even more then she already had accomplished Lara moved forward even more. There wasn't a lot of space between them at all right now. She pulled up a really smooth and sensual smile which distracted him so much that he wasn't sure where he preferred to look at. Her beautiful smile or the cleavage.

"I…I…uhm…uhm." Eventually he made the choice to look her in the eyes, he instantly sank into them. Lara knew she was in control now, the tomb raider would even bet she could make him dance while making monkey sounds. "I'll look up their room, give me a moment miss…"

When first he couldn't be separated from his computer screen, this time it took him all the effort in the world to move his eyes back to it. As he entered commands on the keyboard he kept moving his eyes from the screen to Lara and back to the screen again. Lara used this time to lean back again, while it was quite enjoyable to see how easily certain men can be manipulated by the female charm, she preferred him to keep his eyes to himself. Still, she managed to get the information she needed from him and that was what mattered.

"Room 317" he said and was relieved he found what she asked for because he could focus his attention at Lara again.

Lara held her façade, even though she already got what she wanted.

"Thank you so much. I'll be sure my boss will send you a coupon too. Have a nice day, sir."

Lara winked at him, he just nodded and was already lost in his fantasies again. Lara elegantly walked further into the building and found her way upstairs. The man kept staring at her, the tomb raider didn't see it, but she just knew it. He wouldn't be able to look away until she was out of sight. And probably even then it will take him a while to get his senses back.

But Lara didn't care anymore, she had already buttoned up her blouse and it didn't take long for her to reach the third floor. The man behind the counter had already been forgotten, though she made a mental note to take a good shower later today, she still felt a bit violated. Her own fault for picking this option of course, but the violent more direct way was not an option and would give her all the wrong kinds of attention.

She advanced through the black, white and grey decorated hallway. Every now and then the wall held a lamp to lit the hallway, or a small cupboard with a plant to try and make it look less dull. Well, that's what you get for badly combining colors. It almost made her feel as if she was walking through a prison.

Lara looked up as her eyes noticed the number 317, she forced herself to a halt immediately. This was the room she had to be in, if the hotel employee had actually given her the right number. Let's hope Lara hadn't distracted him too much. Before going inside, Lara moved up the bag and opened it. Of course the man had no idea that there actually wasn't a camera in it, but the bag had served its purpose and was perfect for hiding her gun in it. She pulled it out and turned to the door, her hand moved to the handle but stopped halfway when something caught her attention.

The door was already open, only for a small crack, but it was clearly open. That couldn't mean anything good. Then again, she was about to visit the hotel room of a dead woman, it was obvious she wouldn't find anything good in that room. However, it could mean there is someone else in the room. Even worse, that someone else could be Karel. The tomb raider swallowed deeply and felt herself getting a bit nervous. What if he was expecting her and Lara was walking straight into a trap. He could have set this all up from the beginning, he could have purposely let the priest reach her house and the same could go for the business card that she found on the dead woman. Lara shrugged and quickly cleared her head from these ridiculous theories.

"Listen to yourself, Lara, you're becoming a skilled conspiracy theorist." She mumbled softly to herself with a smile.

If Karel was in there so be it, she would just have to improvise, there is no turning back now. The tomb raider took a deep breath and readied her gun in front of her, hoping to be ready for whatever she would find in the room. She gave the door a slight nudge, it opened with a soft squeaking sound, Lara shrugged, so much for a quiet entrance. The door was open enough for her to walk through now, so she carefully advanced forward with her gun at the ready. Ahead of her she could see a small cupboard with a TV on it. To the right of it she saw a chair and the start of a table, the rest of her view was still blocked by the door.

To make sure she wouldn't be surprised by someone hiding behind the door, Lara quickly turned around and readied her gun. She was relieved when there was nothing but the wall staring back at her, but quickly turned around again, Lara didn't want anyone sneaking up from behind her either. Damn, why was she so nervous, it's not the first time she is in a situation like this. Lara had been in a lot of these situations but never had she been this nervous.

"Bloody Nephilim…" she said softly, blaming Karel for making her feel so uneasy.

She tried to focus on the situation at hand. The table she caught a glimpse off earlier was now fully in sight, with another chair on the other side of it. Looking further to her right she saw two small chairs with a smaller table between them. With a quick glance Lara saw the TV remote lying on top of that table, but it was hardly worth looking at. She had already turned her attention to a door which was present at the far left of the room. No doubt that door would lead to the bed room.

So far she hadn't found any sign of life, but Lara wasn't happy until she had seen what was in the bed room. Carefully, with her gun still at the ready she approached it. With every step Lara felt her heart beat faster and her nerves increasing. The young woman still didn't understand why she allowed herself to be this nervous, she tried not to think about it and focused on the door, which was now within arm's reach. But concealing her nerves wasn't really working. They increased with every second, sweat was dripping down her cheeks and the beating of her heart throbbed in her head.

The clamp and sweaty hand that was moving to the door handle was slightly shaking. What was happening to her, the young woman didn't want to be this nervous, but if Karel was there...Lara still remembered her run in with him in the hotel room in Rome. Shivers ran down her spine when she thought back of that day, the nightmares still keep her awake sometimes at night. The Nephilim is ten times stronger than she is. If he is on the other side of the door Lara might as well put a bullet inside her own head, fighting him was pointless and he would definitely not let her run away.

"Damn it…" she cursed at herself. "Stop worrying, get yourself together, Lara."

The tomb raider could say what she wanted, the closer her hand got to the handle, the bigger the throbbing in her head became. Lara shook her head in an attempt to get rid of that annoying feeling, but it was pointless. So despite all the fear and uncertainty that had taken control of the tomb raider, her hand reached for the handle. Lara expected to come in contact with the cold metal of the door handle, but Lara was startled when she grasped nothing but air and saw the door flying back. There was no time to react for Lara, even if she wanted to. Lara felt herself freeze in panic as she felt the cold metal of a gun pressed against her forehead followed by the clicking sound of the safety being removed from the gun.

"Move and you're dead."


	5. Reunion

_Just a quick thanks to all my reviewers, I really appreciate it. Story might have been a bit actionless, but I promise some action soon. I'll do my best to update as quickly as I can. :)_

_Now back to the story, enjoy!_

**Chapter 5, Reunion.**

At any other moment Lara would have been worried and do just that what her attacker demanded of her. But the voice of her attacker betrayed who he was and she recognized him immediately. Her nerves and worries faded instantly as she looked up to confirm her suspicions.

"Kurtis…"

Before she even mentioned his name she felt the gun being removed from her head. He too realized there was no need to be cautious anymore.

"Lara…"

They just stood there for a moment, staring at each other. Lara felt like throwing herself in his arms and never let go. She didn't know why, but the tomb raider was really happy to see him. Since the day he drove off on her bike she hadn't seen or spoken to him at all. It had been difficult to say goodbye to him like that. There were…feelings she had for him but it wasn't easy. Especially since that day Karel had pretended to be him. That disgusting kiss, and then the horrible assault on her life. It had all been thanks to Kurtis that she survived that, but it had been enough from the Nephilim to make her doubt her feelings.

The train of thoughts that suddenly shot into her head proved that Karel had made her a bit uncertain. What made her so sure this was Kurtis? It could be Karel, and the tomb raider could be walking straight into a similar trap again, only this time there would be no one around to save her. No Lara would not make the same mistake twice, she would need to make sure that the person standing in front of her was actually Kurtis. Her eyes slightly widened in panic as nerves roamed around in her stomach and her gun moved up to Kurtis again.

The American was shocked when he saw the panic in her eyes and the gun aimed at him. The shock was quickly replaced by confusion, why was she aiming her gun at him again? Had he done anything to upset her? Either way, he had already tugged his gun away, Kurtis was defenseless.

"What are you doing?" he asked worried, but gently put his hands up in the air.

"Who are you?" she demanded to know.

Kurtis tried to take a few paces forward, but he stopped in his tracks when Lara increased her grip on the handle with her other hand.

"What are you talking about, it's me, Kurtis. Who else could I possibly be?"

"I fell for that little trick once already, not again." She said, doing her best to stay calm. "Prove to me that you really are Kurtis."

Kurtis shook his head in disbelief. "Come on now Lara, this is ridiculous. If I was Karel I probably would have killed you already." He said, this time deciding not to put another step closer to her.

She seemed nervous to him, something he wasn't used to when it came to the Tomb Raider. Lara was a confident woman, no matter which situation she was in. Or at least she emitted confidence, there was no doubt that she too knew fear, but she would never show it. But now, here, this was different. Lara was nervous and uncertain, it was best not to do something wrong to make her accidently fire the gun.

She looked down, and started thinking. Maybe he had a point. Surely Karel wouldn't try to deceive her like this again. He'd know she wouldn't fall for it twice. Besides, there really was no need for it this time, in her eyes at least. No, this was Karel she was talking about. If there was a way to mess with her head, he would grasp that opportunity with both hands. Lara needed proof from Kurtis, she refused to lower the gun.

"No, it's just not enough, Kurtis. I…I need proof…"

She saw he accepted her caution this time. He looked down, thinking of a way he could convince her it was really him. Who was she fooling, why was she having these doubts, of course it was him, there really was no reason for all this, right?

"A while back we've been to Rome and Turkey together with Kyra to stop her father and Karel."

Why, why did he come with this answer, this wasn't good enough, maybe it wasn't that stupid after all to ask him for insurance. Karel knew this, this didn't prove at all that the man before her was Kurtis. She tightened her grip around the gun, though removing one hand from it.

"No, Karel knows that, I need to know something only we know…please Kurtis…"

She begged him as if already knowing he was the real Kurtis. Yet the gun was still directed at his head. Kurtis knew she needed reassurance, there was no other way for her to relax. Damn that Nephilim, what had he done to a usually so confident woman?

"Alright…" he said, also realizing his first response was way too easy to give. "On the night we said goodbye...I wanted to kiss you, show my feelings for you. But you were not ready for that, so instead I gave you a small kiss, softly…gently…on your cheek."

Shivers ran down Lara's spine, she remembered that moment as if it had happened yesterday. The touch of his lips on her cheek. It had released a certain vibe in her body, but the scars from Karel's attack had still been fresh, she could not give in to that sensation. But now, years after it had happened she still felt that uncertainty, that doubt that made it really hard for Lara to give in to her feelings. The tomb raider refused to dwell into this, to get into another battle with herself. The important thing was that the words Kurtis just spoke was something Karel couldn't know. He 'd been buried and trapped in that chapel, the only ones present at that time had been her and Kurtis.

Lara sighed in relief, never noticing the breath she was holding. The gun lowered to her side while her other hand moved up to her head, trying to clear and calm it from all the worries rushing through it. Her eyes moved down to the hand holding the gun, it was shaking. Lara didn't know why, but she really wanted it to stop. Kurtis was one step ahead of her, he closed the space between them now that he knew he was safe, and moved his hand down to the gun. It was gently removed from her hand and tugged behind his back.

With the gun being out of harm's way, Lara could now safely do what she wanted to do earlier. Without hesitation the tomb raider threw herself in his arms, pulling his body tightly against hers and refusing to ever let him go. A waterfall of emotions exploded inside of her, tears ran down her cheek and Lara didn't do anything to stop them from connecting with the black shirt Kurtis was wearing. Kurtis on his turn held her tightly as well. There was no doubt he could see Lara was hurt, still broken from the nasty experience in Rome. He gave her all the time she would need to get back to her senses.

Lara had no idea how much time passed. But after surrendering herself to her emotions, she now felt a wave of relief running over her body. She'd never been one for showing her emotions, but this felt good, as if a terrible weight had left her shoulders. The tomb raider pulled herself free from the embrace and moved her eyes up to Kurtis. Their eyes met as Lara finally found courage to speak.

"I'm sorry, Kurtis." She said softly.

"It's alright Lara, I understand."

Maybe this was what Lara needed, a shoulder to cry on. She had cropped up her feelings over the last few years, never talked to anyone about the nightmares it sometimes still gave her, not even to Winston. The tomb raider felt ashamed by it. Of all the things she had seen and done in her life, a trick from Karel and then an attempt on her life would give her nightmares and not some Supernatural monster guarding a relic she had been looking for. It was stupid.

But for some reason, Lara felt empty, refreshed. Perhaps it was only a momentum, but at least for now Lara was glad she was no longer controlled by fear and doubt.

"I Just had to know…" she said, taking a step backwards.

"I completely understand Lara, don't worry about it anymore." He answered.

The tomb raider nodded, she wasn't completely to blame for this. How could she possibly know Kurtis would be standing on the other side of the door? He hadn't been present at the manor when the Priest came to warn her about Karel.

"But from all the people, I really didn't expect you to stand on the other side of that door." She said. "How did you know Karel escaped?"

Kurtis immediately looked away, his back was turned to her as if he felt ashamed about something. Wondering why he turned away from her, Lara stepped next to him and searched for his eyes, she saw guilt in them. Why would he feel responsible for Karel's escape?

"What's wrong?" she asked him.

Kurtis sighed deeply and frustratingly ran his hand over his head, that still held inches short hair.

"Since the day I left your manor, on your bike, I made it my mission to keep an eye on the prison. I came by every day to make sure Karel would stay locked inside the ruined chapel."

"Really?" Lara said a bit shocked. "You didn't trust Kyra's word?"

"Oh I trust Kyra." He said "I just don't trust Karel."

"Fair enough." Lara replied, understanding his reasoning but not agreeing with it. However, this was an issue to discuss another time, he had probably felt compelled to do this as the last remaining member of the Lux Veritartis

"But why do I see guilt in your eyes?" She continued, still wondering why he felt guilty.

Kurtis shook his head, his hand moved over his head again. What could possibly make him feel this guilty about Karel's escape? As Kurtis looked up and struggled to keep eye contact, Lara knew she was about to find out.

"Like on any other day since his imprisonment, I went to the chapel. It was a rather busy, had to worm myself through the crowd, almost knocked over an arguing Chinese couple."

Lara narrowed her eyes at the last few words. Arguing Chinese couple, he must be referring to the woman Lara found dead earlier.

I didn't think much of it obviously, who would, but then I reached the chapel and found it empty, with the shield gone."

Lara knew where this was heading. "You found the woman's body, and recognized her from the run in you almost had with her and her husband." Lara predicted.

"I did." He replied nodding. "The woman must be somehow responsible for his escape, intentional or not. Karel killed this woman and assumed her identity to escape without drawing attention to himself."

"And you tried to find him and stop him." Lara asked rhetorically.

"As quickly as I could, but there were a lot of people around that day. It was hard to find him, but I knew I had to, or that man would be Karel's next victim."

"Did you?"

Kurtis remained silent and approached the door where the two friends had run into each other not that long ago. He pushed the door open completely and stepped inside while he shook his head. Lara understood he wanted to show her something so she followed him. Her eyes immediately connected with a bed, on top of it was the lifeless body of a man. Lara understood now why Kurtis felt so guilty.

Had he been there a bit earlier that day, he would have been able to prevent Karel from escaping and this man and his wife would still be alive. Two completely innocent people who were spending their holiday together in Turkey, have had their lives taken from them because they happened to be at wrong place at the wrong time. Karel proved once again how dangerous he was and that he needed to be stopped. There still was one mystery though, what was the woman's connection to Karel's escape. What could she possibly have done to break the prison Kyra had created?

But Kurtis would probably be just as clueless about it as she was. After all he arrived at the scene after Karel had escaped and she had been murdered. First things first, Lara had to make it obvious to him that the death of this couple had not been his fault.

"They should be in here, find them!"

The tomb raider was apparently not allowed to talk some sense into Kurtis, voices that came from outside the hotel room interrupted the conversation she was about to start with him. Kurtis noticed the voices too, they were coming from outside. He walked over to the window and used two fingers to push up the blinds. The Lux Veritartis didn't hesitate for a second and immediately pulled away from the window again, holding a panicked look on his face.

"Shit…" he said.

"Trouble?" she asked, but the look on his face already answered that question.

"About a dozen of men, heavily armed." He answered with a nod.

"Bugger, we need to get out of here."

They both looked up to the body, fleeing a murder scene was probably not a good idea. But chances were that these men were not working for the government. They both had a pretty good guess who had sent these men over, Karel was trying to clean his tracks.

"Let's get out through the back, I've got my bike parked there." Kurtis said as they both headed for the exit of the hotel room.

"You mean my bike?" Lara joked.

Kurtis looked at her and smiled. "Yes, your bike, thanks for reminding me."

The two friends started their escape and exited the hotel room with Kurtis up front. The least he or Lara expected was for more goons to stand on the outside of the room. So when Kurtis had barely set a foot outside he was surprised to hear the safety being removed from a gun. He froze in his tracks as the cold metal was pressed firmly to the left side of his head. Kurtis could only hope these men were ordered to take them in alive, or he would only be split second away from his death.


	6. Uneven Odds

_Hi Guys! Yes, yes I know. I should start with apologizing for letting you wait so long for the next chapter. I just been so massively busy with work, holidays and more work. But it's here now, the next chapter (without Bryce again sorry Wyvern but he will be back soon!). Feel free to let me know what you think of the chapter and in return I will offer chocolate chip cookies!_

**Chapter 6, Uneven odds.**

"Don't move, hands where I can see them." The mercenary warned Kurtis

The Lux Knight didn't have to be told twice when he had a gun pointed to his head. He moved his hands up, but cursed at himself for being caught this easy. But Kurtis knew Lara was right behind him. He blindly trusted on the tomb raider to get him out of this situation. Though with a quick look at the mercenary Kurtis saw this man was a bit nervous. He kept shifting the gun around in his shaking and sweating hand.

"Excuse me…" Lara's voice echoed through the hallway.

The Lux Knight looked up to his friend and saw the tomb raider had her gun out, but it was not directed at the mercenary's head. It was aimed lower, at a section a man would hold really dear. Kurtis swallowed deeply, boy was he glad she was on his side; suddenly that gun to his head wasn't that bad anymore.

"Would you mind removing that gun from my friend's head please?" the tomb raider kindly asked.

The man's head jerked up to Lara instantly, he hadn't expected her at all, which was weird to say the least. These mercenaries were here for the both of them he should have known she was around. Lara smiled wickedly as the man's eyes widened in realization of the position he has gotten himself into. It looked like he was ready to surrender but then something changed in his eyes. He calmed himself and refused to do what Lara asked of him.

"You shoot me he dies." He said but still seemed a bit shaken.

Lara held her wicked smile as she answered him. "I don't need to shoot you, I just need you to drop your gun." She explained again.

"N-not a chance..." the man said but the nerves were clearly visible on him again. His hand was shaking and sweat was dripping from the side of his head.

Lara chuckled. "I doubt very much you have the balls to shoot him. Look at you, your hands are shaking and you are sweating terribly. So what will it be, you losing your manhood or will you be reasonable and drop the gun, hmm?"

To make sure he understood how serious the tomb raider was, she took a step closer to the mercenary, there was not a lot of space between them now. Startled, the man looked down at the gun again. His nerves increased and he swallowed deeply.

"I am..uhm..." the man started stuttering.

He realized his position was hopeless and with a deep sigh the gun was being lowered. Kurtis immediately made his move. One hand reached for the man's gun and yanked it out of his grasp while the Lux Knight balled his other hand into a fist and knocked it to the side of the man's head. Their attacker dropped to the floor immediately, there was no movement left in him, he was out in a flash.

"Karel should send more men like him after us, he was way too nervous." Kurtis concluded.

But when Lara knelt down next to the man she noticed he was probably not send after them by Karel. "Look at his clothing, simple jeans and sweater. I doubt he works for Karel." She quickly concluded, but a quick search in his pockets didn't result in an ID.

"I am glad you're on my side though." Kurtis said.

Lara raised an eyebrow at his words. "What do you mean with that?" she wondered.

The Lux Knight froze in his tracks, unable to remove his stare from the stern eyes of the tomb raider. He suddenly felt like a young boy having to explain himself to his parents after doing something wrong. He sighed in relief though when the sound of voices interrupted their conversation and made the friends realize they had to leave immediately. About four mercenaries, these were actually dressed in black BDU's and carrying rifles, came running into the hallway and spotted the two friends.

"Bugger, no time to ask questions, let's go Kurtis." She said.

"Saved by the bad guys." Kurtis joked as they started running.

Lara shook her head but could not stop herself from smiling at his joke. Her attention immediately went back to the situation at hand as the mercenaries started shooting. The British woman and the American man ran as fast as they could, crisscrossing through the hallway to do their best to dodge the bullets that were flying everywhere. Luckily the end of the hall and a right or left turn was nearing for them. Lara left the decision of which side to pick to Kurtis, he knew where the bike was parked and he could no doubt judge what the best way of getting there was.

A bullet from one of the mercenaries suddenly dug itself in the ground only inches from Lara's foot. The tomb raider cursed when the bullet made her loose her balance just after she saw Kurtis deciding to go left. Stumbling on hands and feet she tried to find her balance again, but with bullets flying left and right this wasn't easy for her. This time however, Kurtis was the one who had her back. A hand wrapped itself around her wrist and practically yanked the British woman around the corner. Lara felt a bullet flying inches over her head before she was finally safe, for now.

"It doesn't really look like Karel wants us alive, does it?" Kurtis said, helping Lara back on her feet.

"Bloody hell." She said, straightening herself, but couldn't help to have noticed most of the bullets were aimed at her. "I don't think he wants us both death Kurtis, but only me. It seemed to me at least that they were only aiming at me."

The two started running again, knowing that these mercenaries wouldn't stop until their mission was complete. "No, I noticed it too, but I hoped to be wrong." He said while his hand reached into the back pocket of his pants.

Lara looked up and saw there was a door blocking their way, however, the door held no handle but did have a security lock. The tomb raider noticed that Kurtis probably just pulled out the card that was needed to open the door.

"How did you get that?"

Kurtis winked at her. "Hey, as a kid I was a star in pick pocketing, you'll find I am a man of many talents." He said with a smile as he pushed the card into the device.

A green light lit up immediately and the door clicked open. Kurtis opened the door but at the same time shot the device to make sure no one else would be able to get through the door after them. The voices of the mercenaries were getting closer and it wouldn't take long before they would have them in their sight again. But with the security lock destroyed and the door closing behind them just now, this group of mercenaries would be off their backs for a while.

There was a staircase ahead of them. The two friends didn't hesitate and started advancing down the stairs as quickly as possible. There was no knowing how many mercenaries there were and more importantly, where they were.

"We are almost there, just get down and out of the building." Kurtis informed Lara as they ran down the stairs.

Behind them they heard the Mercenaries banging and shooting at the door to try and chase after the two friends. But their attempts were all pointless. The tomb raider and the Lux Knight reached the end of the staircase, they were almost to safety. Kurtis reached for the handle of the door and looked at Lara.

"I'll open it, get your gun ready in case there is someone waiting for us at the other side."

Lara nodded at him in response and readied her gun. The Lux Knight didn't hesitate and opened the door, he took a step aside and readied his gun as well. But all they were confronted with was thin air and the back wall of the other wing of the Hotel. That didn't mean there was no one there though, so Lara took point and slowly walked out with her gun aimed in front of her. Once one foot was outside, the tomb raider quickly turned to make sure no one was waiting for them to come out.

Her eyes trained on the hotel walls again and a rather big container. She turned around, making sure no one would come from the other side. Kurtis was close behind her, mirroring her actions. But it seemed their worries were for nothing, no mercenaries were near. Lara thought this to be a bit strange. Then suddenly Lara saw something move from the corner of her eye. Looking up she saw someone jumping down from the roof, lunging at them.

Neither of them could stop the rather tall and muscled figure from landing on top them. They dropped down to the ground, slightly dazed and guns scattering away. Lara shook her head, knowing there was no time to lie around and recover. Looking up she saw the bulk of a man lifting Kurtis in the air and throwing him back inside the hotel. The Lux Knight collided with the staircase and then remained motionless on the floor. The muscled man with really short auburn hair closed the door and blocked it by effortlessly pushing the rather big container in front of it.

While Lara stood back to her feet, the man now turned his attention back to the tomb raider. He looked up and down her body and smirked. "A shame you have to die sweetheart, but orders are orders." He said threatening.

Lara had fought demons twice the size of him, there was no reason why she wouldn't be able to beat this muscle machine. Though against those demons she did have her guns, and right now she was unarmed, but so was the man. His only advantage over her was his size, but that of course could also be an advantage to her.

"Bring it on then, muscles." She taunted him.

The man didn't have to be told twice. He lunged at the tomb raider, on a speed that was exceptional for a bulky man, but still not fast enough for Lara. She jumped aside and he missed her completely, stumbling forward. The British woman was glad she stepped away though, if he had hit her it could have been rather painful.

Once he balanced himself he turned and growled at Lara. The tomb raider tried to remain calm, to think of a way to end this. Simple punches would probably hurt nothing but her own hands. She will have to play defensive, until she figured out a plan.

"Oh this is going to be fun." The man said, smirking at her.

He reached for something behind his back and Lara's eyes immediately connected with an army knife. Without warning it was thrown at her. Lara increased her defences and jumped aside, evading the knife. Then he reached behind his back again, pulling out a similar knife. This one too was thrown at her and directly after that he ran towards her, hoping the knifes had thrown her off balance. But Lara was in time to see him coming. Quickly she jumped aside and managed to push him away. The man stumbled and connected with the container he had used to keep Kurtis trapped. It didn't look like it affected him that much though. He quickly turned around and faced the tomb raider.

"You are going to regret that." He growled at her.

He charged at her once more and again Lara managed to dodge his attack. Only now he was prepared for this and regained his balance quicker. This surprised the tomb raider, he really was exceptionally quick for his build. He slammed his fist backwards, the British woman just barely managed to evade it. But while she dodged, he already kneeled down to tackle her. Lara was too late to block this attack and felt her feet being swooped from under her. With a grunt the tomb raider landed on her back and without warning the muscled man leaned over her and put his weight on top of her legs.

One of his hands wrapped itself around her neck and started closing down her windpipe. It was obvious he was trying to choke her. Lara immediately tried to struggle from his grip. But the man had her locked down, his full weight on her legs and the strength he only needed with his one hand made it next to impossible for the tomb raider to break free. She tried though, with all her might.

"No, no, sweetheart, it's over for you now." The man said confident.

Lara refused to agree with him, she would not let herself be brought down this easily. In a bit of a panic her hands reached for the hand that was choking her, but he easily brushed her hands away, laughing at her almost clumsy attempts to free herself.

Lara was still gasping for air. The British woman knew she had to do something quick, or he would actually succeed in choking her. But no matter what she tried, he deflected all of her attempts to free herself. The tomb raider realized she needed help from Kurtis. Her eyes moved to the container blocking the door, somehow she hoped it wouldn't be there anymore. But it was still at its place, Kurtis would not be coming to her rescue.

"He's locked up safe and sound, missy. No one can save you now." The man said, his voice echoing through her head.

Dark spots started to erupt in front of her eyes, the lack of oxygen was starting to take its toll. Lara started to feel weaker. She clawed at the choking hand, again trying to free herself. But she was really weakened by now, there was no strength left to get this bulk of a man off her.

Was this it then, after all the dangerous work she had done during her tomb raiding, was this the way her life is about to end. Being choked by an oversized man? As much as Lara refused to believe this, reality was kicking in. Darkness was nearing, the man she was looking at became a blur. His laughter echoed through her head as he realized she had given up and it was only a matter of time before Lara would choke to death. The strength in her clawing hands faded, they dropped motionless to the floor next to her, Lara tried to suck in one last gasp of air, then her head fell back and darkness took control.


End file.
